He has been widely considered the wealthiest American of all time[1][2] and the richest person in modern history. She also put up with his philandering and his double life, which included bigamy. The strike was fought vigorously by the coal mine operators association and its steering committee, which included Welborn, president of CF&I, a spokesman for the coal operators. He paid towards the freedom of two slaves[102] and donated to a Roman Catholic orphanage. [84] Although her work prompted a huge backlash against the company, Tarbell stated she was surprised at its magnitude. Udo Hielscher: Historische amerikanische Aktien, p. 68 74, Laughlin, Rosemary. He truly believed in the biblical principle found in Luke 6:38, "Give, and it will be given to you. Standard Oil had gained an aura of invincibility, always prevailing against competitors, critics, and political enemies. Rockefeller had entered the raucous oil business during the Civil War, when oil often sold for a dollar a gallon. While most refiners dumped oil byproducts into nearby rivers, Rockefeller wisely hired research-and-development men to produce waxes, paving materials, and detergents from the seemingly unmarketable sludge that was discarded. Born in upstate New York, Rockefeller entered the oil business by investing in a Cleveland, Ohio refinery in 1863. [64] Rockefeller was under great strain during the 1870s and 1880s when he was carrying out his plan of consolidation and integration and being attacked by the press. "[48], Instead of wanting to eliminate them, Rockefeller saw himself as the industry's savior, "an angel of mercy" absorbing the weak and making the industry as a whole stronger, more efficient, and more competitive. [63], Standard countered, held back its shipments, and, with the help of other railroads, started a price war that dramatically reduced freight payments and caused labor unrest. WebIn 1973 Rockefeller founded the Trilateral Commission, a private international organization designed to confront the challenges posed by globalization and to encourage greater cooperation between the United States and its principal allies (Canada, Japan, and the countries of western Europe). Much of his giving was church-related. [39] Rockefeller went steadily ahead in business from there, making money each year of his career. By the time he was twenty, his charity exceeded ten percent of his income. His company and business practices came under criticism, particularly in the writings of author Ida Tarbell . The price of the refined oil in 1863 was around $13 a barrel, with a profit margin of around $5 to $8 a barrel. WebIn the 1860s John D. Rockefeller took note of the expansion of oil production in western Pennsylvania and built an oil refinery near Cleveland, Ohio, in 1863. John D. Rockefeller was an American business magnate and philanthropist. [90] Analysis of the company's operations by John D. Rockefeller, Jr. showed a need for substantially more funds which were provided in exchange for acquisition of CF&I's subsidiaries such as the Colorado and Wyoming Railway Company, the Crystal River Railroad Company, and possibly the Rocky Mountain Coal and Iron Company. Born in upstate New York, Rockefeller entered the oil business by investing in a Cleveland, Ohio refinery in 1863. [47], While other refineries would keep the 60% of oil product that became kerosene, but dump the other 40% in rivers and massive sludge piles,[48] Rockefeller used the gasoline to fuel the refinery, and sold the rest as lubricating oil, petroleum jelly and paraffin wax, and other by-products. In 1867, Henry Morrison Flagler became a partner, and the firm of Rockefeller, Andrews & Flagler was established. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. WebIn the 1860s John D. Rockefeller took note of the expansion of oil production in western Pennsylvania and built an oil refinery near Cleveland, Ohio, in 1863. This was probably the greatest amount of wealth that any private citizen had ever been able to accumulate by his own efforts. The railroads competed fiercely for traffic and, in an attempt to create a cartel to control freight rates, formed the South Improvement Company offering special deals to bulk customers like Standard Oil, outside the main oil centers. John D. Rockefeller is reported to be the wealthiest man in America with about $150,000,000 and an income of $25,000 per day. This incident brought unwanted national attention to Colorado. Bill once bragged, "I cheat my boys every chance I get. Philanthropy Roundtable - Biography of John Rockefeller Sr. John D. Rockefeller - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), John D. Rockefeller - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). [62] The railroad, seeing Standard's incursion into the transportation and pipeline fields, struck back and formed a subsidiary to buy and build oil refineries and pipelines. While most refiners dumped oil byproducts into nearby rivers, Rockefeller wisely hired research-and-development men to produce waxes, paving materials, and detergents from the seemingly unmarketable sludge that was discarded. [74] Robert Nobel had established his own refining enterprise in the abundant and cheaper Russian oil fields, including the region's first pipeline and the world's first oil tanker. Instead of using his father's method of presence to collect debts, Rockefeller relied on a persistent pestering approach. Because of Rockefellers emphasis on economical operations, Standard prospered and began to buy out its competitors until, by 1872, it controlled nearly all the refineries in Cleveland. The camp was burned, resulting in 15 women and children, who hid in tents at the camp, being burned to death. In 1879, the New York State Legislature's Hepburn Committee investigations into "alleged abuses" committed by the railroads uncovered the fact that Standard Oil was receiving substantial freight rebates on all of the oil it was transporting by railroad and was crushing Standard's competitors thereby. [71], The company's vast American empire included 20,000 domestic wells, 4,000 miles of pipeline, 5,000 tank cars, and over 100,000 employees. The overproducing of oil and the developing of new markets caused the price of oil to fluctuate wildly. Without her keen advice, I would be a poor man."[40]. John D. Rockefeller was remembered for his wealth and for the aggressive competitive practices of the Standard Oil Company. It had become the richest, biggest, most feared business in the world, seemingly immune to the boom and bust of the business cycle, consistently making profits year after year. In 1892 the Ohio Supreme Court held that the Standard Oil Trust was a monopoly in violation of an Ohio law prohibiting monopolies. The aggressive competitive practices of Standard Oil, which many regarded as ruthless, and the growing public hostility toward monopolies, of which Standard was the best-known, caused some industrialized states to enact antimonopoly laws and led to the passage by the U.S. Congress of the Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890 (see also antitrust law). On this day in 1870, Rockefeller incorporated the company that would make him almost inconceivably rich and, in many ways, begin the modern age of oil. In 1901, U.S. Steel, then controlled by J. Pierpont Morgan, having bought Andrew Carnegie's steel assets, offered to buy Standard's iron interests as well. Osgood left the company in 1904 and devoted his efforts to operating competing coal and coke operations. Under the protection of the National Guard, some miners returned to work and some strikebreakers, imported from the eastern coalfields, joined them as Guard troops protecting their movements. The University of Chicago has long accorded John D. Rockefeller the official designation of "Founder," and that accolade may offer some historical compensation to Rockefeller's more conventional and hostile sobriquet of "robber baron." [24], Eliza was a homemaker and a devout Baptist who struggled to maintain a semblance of stability at home, as Bill was frequently gone for extended periods. It added its own pipelines, tank cars, and home delivery network. I, 1879)", "Militia slaughters strikers at Ludlow, Colorado", "Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Foundation", "Text of Rockefeller's Letter to Dr. Butler", "John D. Rockefeller Sr. and family timeline", "John D Rockefeller:Infinitely Ruthless, Profoundly Charitable", "The Richest Man In History: Rockefeller is Born", "Financier's Fortune in Oil Amassed in Industrial Era of 'Rugged Individualism', "Toward a 'Universal Heritage': Education and the Development of Rockefeller Philanthropy, 18841913", Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey v. United States, Standard Oil Co. v. United States (Standard Stations), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_D._Rockefeller&oldid=1138196481, American businesspeople in the oil industry, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from February 2021, Articles with incomplete citations from February 2021, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles with incomplete citations from May 2021, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from January 2023, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2020, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2020, Pages using Sister project links with wikidata namespace mismatch, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Alice Rockefeller (July 14, 1869 August 20, 1870), Public Diary of John D. Rockefeller, now found in the Cleveland Western Historical Society, This page was last edited on 8 February 2023, at 14:21. [124], Rockefeller's fourth main philanthropy, the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Foundation, was created in 1918. Biographer Allan Nevins, answering Rockefeller's enemies, concluded: The rise of the Standard Oil men to great wealth was not from poverty. This campaign used a combination of politics and science, along with collaboration between healthcare workers and government officials to accomplish its goals. It was not meteor-like, but accomplished over a quarter of a century by courageous venturing in a field so risky that most large capitalists avoided it, by arduous labors, and by more sagacious and farsighted planning than had been applied to any other American industry. [38], In 1859, Rockefeller went into the produce commission business with a partner, Maurice B. Clark, and they raised $4,000 ($120,637 in 2021 dollars) in capital. Coal had previously been used to extract kerosene, but its tedious extraction process and high price prevented broad use. John D. Rockefeller was an American business magnate and philanthropist. "[49] He was well-positioned to take advantage of postwar prosperity and the great expansion westward fostered by the growth of railroads and an oil-fueled economy. August 2, 1896 An article documents Rockefellers life and his rise to wealth, from poverty to possessing millions of dollars. [117] He founded the Rockefeller Sanitary Commission in 1909,[114] an organization that eventually eradicated the hookworm disease,[118] which had long plagued rural areas of the American South. Rockefeller entered the fledgling Oil industry in 1863, by investing in a factory in Cleveland, Ohio. [110] The foundation helped in World War I war relief,[122] and it employed William Lyon Mackenzie King of Canada to study industrial relations.